pilgrim in progress http://blog.therivendellcenter.org jason kovacs | life, faith, adoption, church, culture, and other randomness Thu, 04 Sep 2008 14:24:01 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5.1 en Clean Water http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/09/04/clean-water/ http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/09/04/clean-water/#comments Thu, 04 Sep 2008 14:24:01 +0000 Jason http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/09/04/clean-water/ This is a powerful video.
1.1 billion people on the planet don’t have clean water!
Most of us have never been without clean water.
You can learn more here.

]]> http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/09/04/clean-water/feed/ Blogging http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/09/04/blogging/ http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/09/04/blogging/#comments Thu, 04 Sep 2008 14:23:24 +0000 Jason http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/09/04/blogging/ Most of my blogging of late has been over here at the ABBA Fund blog.

]]> http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/09/04/blogging/feed/ Celebrating 3 Years http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/07/21/celebrating-3-years/ http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/07/21/celebrating-3-years/#comments Mon, 21 Jul 2008 17:32:57 +0000 Jason http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/07/21/celebrating-adoption/
We had a great weekend celebrating the third anniversary of S and K’s adoption. It’ hard to imagine it has only been that long. We spent some time looking through photos of our first weeks together and giving God glory for His goodness to us. It is amazing to see how much they have grown!

We talked throughout the day about what we were celebrating but understandably so they don’t understand it. They do know adoption is something special and that is good enough for me right now. In fact, we hope and pray that will always be the case.

I pray more than anything that they will experience heavenly adoption through Christ, and that their earthly adoption will serve to point them that way.

This weekends celebration was yet another reminder of the glory of God’s love for sinners; not merely justifying me as a judge but adopting me as His very son. Incredible!

]]> http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/07/21/celebrating-3-years/feed/ Free Registration for the Fall 2008 course on Spiritual Depression: Its Causes and Cure http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/07/17/free-registration-for-the-fall-2008-course-on-spiritual-depression-its-causes-and-cure/ http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/07/17/free-registration-for-the-fall-2008-course-on-spiritual-depression-its-causes-and-cure/#comments Thu, 17 Jul 2008 21:01:26 +0000 Jason http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/07/17/free-registration-for-the-fall-2008-course-on-spiritual-depression-its-causes-and-cure/ I’m thinking about registering for this. I have been meaning to read Lloyd-Jones book for a long time…maybe this will give me some accountability for it.

Anyone else want to join me?

]]> http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/07/17/free-registration-for-the-fall-2008-course-on-spiritual-depression-its-causes-and-cure/feed/ The Church’s Essence http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/07/17/the-churchs-essence/ http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/07/17/the-churchs-essence/#comments Thu, 17 Jul 2008 20:56:33 +0000 Jason http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/07/17/the-churchs-essence/

“Mission” is not something the church does, a part of its total program. No, the church’s essence is missional, for the calling and sending action of God forms its identity. Mission is founded on the mission of God in the world, rather then the churches effort to extend itself.” p. 82 , Missional Church: A Vision for the Sending of the Church in North America

]]> http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/07/17/the-churchs-essence/feed/ “Live on the Brink of Eternity” http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/07/17/live-on-the-brink-of-eternity/ http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/07/17/live-on-the-brink-of-eternity/#comments Thu, 17 Jul 2008 20:55:37 +0000 Jason http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/07/17/live-on-the-brink-of-eternity/ The Life And Diary of David BrainerdI’m re-reading the Life and Diary of David Brainerd and again being humbled and encouraged by his radical sensitivity and passion for Christ. This quote made me think of the missionary couple that I posted on the other day and how easily I can lose sight of eternity. This life is a vapor in light of eternity.

“Oh, I love to live on the brink of eternity, in my views and meditations! This gives me a sweet, awful, and reverential sense and apprehension of God and divine things, when I see myself as it were standing before the judgement seat of Christ…My soul is delighted to be a stranger and pilgrim on the earth.” p. 101

]]> http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/07/17/live-on-the-brink-of-eternity/feed/ Multiracial in America http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/06/05/multiracial-in-america/ http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/06/05/multiracial-in-america/#comments Thu, 05 Jun 2008 19:21:24 +0000 Jason http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/06/05/multiracial-in-america/ Just stumbled on this site. Very interesting. I’m looking forward to hanging out here a little bit. You can also go here to find an interactive map showing the ethnic diversity of the country.

]]> http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/06/05/multiracial-in-america/feed/ C.S. Lewis on Community http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/06/05/cs-lewis-on-community/ http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/06/05/cs-lewis-on-community/#comments Thu, 05 Jun 2008 18:52:46 +0000 Jason http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/06/05/cs-lewis-on-community/

He works on us in all sorts of ways. But above all, he works on
us through each other. Men are mirrors, or “carriers” of Christ to
other men. Ususally it is those who know Him that bring Him to others.
That is why the church, the whole body of Christians showing Him to one
another, is so important. It is so easy to think that the church has a
lot of different objects - education, buildings, missions, holding
services…the Church exists for no other purpose but to draw men to
Christ. to make them little Christs. If they are not doing that, all
the cathedrals, clergy, missions, sermons, even the Bible itself, are
simply a waste of time. God became man for no other purpose. It is even
doubtful, you know, whether the whole universe was created for any
other purpose.



- C.S. Lewis


(HT: Todd Hiestand)

]]> http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/06/05/cs-lewis-on-community/feed/ The Danger of the Internet http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/06/04/the-danger-of-the-internet/ http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/06/04/the-danger-of-the-internet/#comments Wed, 04 Jun 2008 18:54:00 +0000 Jason http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/06/04/the-danger-of-the-internet/ “The danger of the internet is not necessarily porn but the continued waste of time to find the next great thing.”

~ Dr. Michael Goheen

]]> http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/06/04/the-danger-of-the-internet/feed/ Together for Adoption http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/06/02/together-for-adoption/ http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/06/02/together-for-adoption/#comments Mon, 02 Jun 2008 18:50:52 +0000 Jason http://blog.therivendellcenter.org/2008/06/02/together-for-adoption/ I’m very excited to announce Together for Adoption. Our goal is to see churches partnering together with
established orphan care and adoption organizations that recognize the
importance of vertical adoption, in order to sponsor regional adoption
conference events. Ultimately, we believe that these conferences
will help serve the church in fulfilling its responsibility to visit
orphans in their affliction.

Check our new website here.

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